Familiars

Stop me if you've heard this one!  An alley cat, a bluejay and a tree frog walk into a bar...  Nope, it's not a joke and although the three do walk into an inn, they don't actually walk into a bar.   These three are the main characters of a new book, and quite probably a new series, titled The Familiars, written by screenwriting partners, Adam Jay Epstein and Andrew Jacobson.

Aldwyn is a black and white alley cat who hides from a bounty hunter in a pet shop that sells magical animals to wizards.  Before he has a chance to get out of the cage he has hidden in, Aldwyn is chosen by a boy named Jack.  Ahhhh, another boy and pet story - so cute.  Not so fast.

Soon after Aldwyn makes his home with Jack, two other young students and the old wizard Kalstaff, the humans are captured by evil forces.  The three familiars; Aldwyn, who has no magical powers to speak of, Skylar, who is a know-it-all bluejay and Gilbert, a tree frog,whose brain is always on food; are forced to go on a quest to find and save their humans.

There are a lot of formulaic elements here.  The three friends fall into the three most often used categories for buddy stories - one bright, one scrappy, one distracted by the here and now.  Aldwyn's lack of special qualities and his need to lie about it are a major part of the plot.  And that's a plot device that is used often in middle grade fiction - accepting oneself and finding value in oneself.

However, the writing flows so easily and the jokes are clever without being mean.  Aldwyn proves his mettle over and over again, even if he can't see the future or cast illusions.  Just who the evil master-mind behind the plot to kill the young human wizards turns out to be makes a very nice twist.

The ending leaves the door open for more adventures for these three heroes.  Readers of Erin Hunter's novels just might enjoy this mix of fantasy and animal adventure.  The book is slated to become a 3-D animated film, according to the jacket flap.  This one is fun to read and will be a popular movie.